


The Demon and the Snow Witch

by junko



Category: Bleach
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Drabble, Gen, Teasers & Trailers
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-04-20
Updated: 2014-04-20
Packaged: 2018-01-20 04:03:33
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 607
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1495918
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/junko/pseuds/junko
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>A teaser for a story in which Ichigo is sent to an alternate dimension where Rukia and Renji haven't left Inuzuri...</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Demon and the Snow Witch

**Author's Note:**

  * For [spaceviolets](https://archiveofourown.org/users/spaceviolets/gifts).



> On Tumblr sparklecatdragon (who I think is our sparklycatlady) posted this AU idea:
> 
> "ahhhd if they hadn’t decided to join the gotei 13 they probably wouldve just lived together forever and Renji probably would have asked Rukia to marry him eventually and they’d start up a makeshift orphanage and take care of all the stray kids  
> …..now I want to read an AU where the villain has time all messed up and Ichigo has to fix it and he meets Renji and Rukia like this and they’re poor but they’re happy and he feels guilty because they couldn’t have this life and guhhhhhh I’m sad now."
> 
> So, after Josey (cestus) and I started brainstorming like crazy, I started it.
> 
> Marked as appropriate for general audiences, but warning for strong/rude language.

Ichigo stayed hidden in the shadows of the narrow alley. It was weird to keep his distance, but Ukitake had warned him that these two wouldn’t take kindly to shinigami in their territory.

‘These two.’

Sheesh. It was Renji and Rukia! Only in this—dimension? Multiverse? Alternate whatever the hell Hat-and-Clogs had said?—two of his best friends in the whole world didn’t even know him, which was totally fucked up. 

Of course, a lot of things were fucked up in this world, which was why Ichigo was here. Like, look at Renji! Still a big bruiser with most of the same tattoos, but his hair was actually kind of… hot. Or at least it was disturbingly pretty, the way Renji’s usual ruby mess fell loosely past his shoulders. Sexy Renji? That was just wrong. No pineapple! Who was this guy? It disturbed Ichigo to the very core to see Renji like this.

But, frankly, that wasn’t even the weirdest thing about this new Renji.

The weirdest thing was that giant chimera that walked beside him. Having seen Renji’s zanpakutō manifested once before in the training grounds, Ichigo knew that the huge albino baboon-tiger-tanuki-snake creature had to be Zabimaru… but how the heck was that even possible? 

Rukia had changed nearly as much. For one, her hair had gone completely white. Even her eyebrows and lashes looked like they were frosted with ice. The yukata she wore was as white as her hair, though the ragged hems looked liked they’d been dipped in blood.

Which made the black and red of Renji’s yakuta look like her shadow. Her really big, dangerous shadow.

But, only an idiot couldn’t tell that _she_ was the really frightening one. Not only was she armed with a zanpakutō, but also magic trailed her every movement, like fluttering multi-colored ribbons after a kite. Given how shit Ichigo usually was at sensing that kind of thing, he figured she must just ooze power and majesty for most people.

Yet… no one here seemed afraid to approach them. In fact, as he watched, several Inuzuri kids came squealing up to Rukia, demanding treats. She doled them out beatifically, as some of the braver kids tried to pet Zabimaru. Apparently less charitable, Zabimaru bared its yellowed fangs and the snake-tail hissed in warning. Renji laughed and ruffled the huge beast’s fur.

Rukia knelt down and said something Ichigo couldn’t catch. Whatever it was, the kids nodded solemnly before scampering off with a delighted hoot.

She was clearly the queen of this place. Looking at her, it wasn’t hard for Ichigo to see how Rukia’d become Seireitei’s public enemy number one. According to Ukitake, the price on her head exceeded fifty million ken. Renji’s was quite a bit less, though there was some kind of insane bounty out for the pelt of the nue. 

Yeah, but get this: the reward for Rukia’s head? It was put up by none-other-than Kuchiki Byakuya.

Like he’d said: fucked up.

As they continued on down the street, Ichigo found his eyes drawn to Renji's gait. He had a very slight limp. Probably no one else would notice. But this was a guy Ichigo had fought more than once, and Ichigo’s eye had been trained to hone in on even the slightest advantage to exploit in battle.

Hopefully, they wouldn’t have to fight this time. But, now that Ichigo’d spotted them, it was time to go back to the ryokan and fetch Orihime and get this thing started. As Ichigo crept away, he sure hoped Urahara was right about this.

Because the other thing that was different?

Renji and Rukia looked happy.

*

**Author's Note:**

> Now I just have to decide if I should write more (and if I can talk Josey into helping!) Thoughts?


End file.
